Light ray overview

1. Light ray overview • Rays are split into 2 orthogonal rays (e and w) – these rays are slowed to different degrees (apparent birefringence, d related to the refractive index, n; d=ne-nw), and can go in different directions, resulting in a different length to get through a mineral (retardation, D, which is a function of both birefringence and thickness of the mineral)

2. w e polarizer Polarized light going into the crystal splits  into two rays, going at different velocities one is O-ray with n = w other is E-ray with n = e When the rays exit the crystal they recombine When rays of different wavelength combine  what things happen?

3. Michel-Lévy Color Chart – Plate 4.11

4. w 1.544 1.553 e Example: Quartz w = 1.544 e = 1.553 Data from Deer et al Rock Forming Minerals John Wiley & Sons

5. What interference color is this?

6. Colors one observes when polars are crossed (XPL) Color can be quantified numerically: d = nhigh - nlow

7. Rotation of crystal? • Retardation also affected by mineral orientation! • As you rotate a crystal, observed birefringence colors change • Find maximum interference color for each in practice

8. Extinction • When you rotate the stage  extinction relative to the cleavage or principle direction of elongation is extinction angle • Parallel, inclined, symmetric extinction • Divided into 2 signs of elongation based on the use of an accessory plate made of gypsum or quartz (which has a retardation of 550 nm) which changes the color  for a grain at 45º from extinction look for yellow (fast) or blue (slow)

9. Imagine point source of light at garnet center; turn light on for fixed amount of time, then map out distance traveled by light in that time Time for some new tricks: the optical indicatrix Thought experiment: Consider an isotropic mineral (e.g., garnet) What geometric shape is defined by mapped light rays?

10. Light travels the same distance in all directions; n is same everywhere, thus d = nhi-nlo = 0 = black Isotropic indicatrix Soccer ball (or an orange)

11. Uniaxial indicatrix c-axis c-axis tangerine = uniaxial (-) calcite Spaghetti squash = uniaxial (+) quartz

12. Uniaxial indicatrix Circular section is perpendicular to the stem (c-axis)

13. nw nw nw - nw = 0 therefore, d=0: grain stays black (same as the isotropic case) Propagate light along the c-axis, note what happens to it in plane of thin section

14. N nw nw nw nw nw W E ne ne ne ne ne S Now propagate light perpendicular to c-axis ne - nw > 0 therefore, d > 0 Grain changes color upon rotation.Grain will go black whenever indicatrix axis is E-W or N-S This orientation will show the maximum d of the mineral

15. 2Vz The potato! Biaxial indicatrix(triaxial ellipsoid) There are 2 different ways to cut this and get a circle…

16. Alas, the potato (indicatrix) can have any orientation within a biaxial mineral… augite olivine

17. anisotropic minerals - biaxial indicatrix feldspar clinopyroxene Now things get a lot more complicated…

18. Let’s perform the same thought experiment… anisotropic minerals - uniaxial indicatrix c-axis c-axis calcite quartz

19. Uniaxial indicatrix(biaxial ellipsoid) What can the indicatrix tell us about optical properties of individual grains?

20. 2V: a diagnostic property of biaxial minerals • When 2V is acute about Z: (+) • When 2V is acute about X: (-) • When 2V=90°, sign is indeterminate • When 2V=0°, mineral is uniaxial 2V is measured using an interference figure… More in a few minutes

21. Conoscopic Viewing A condensing lens below the stage and a Bertrand lens above it Arrangement essentially folds planes ® cone Light rays are refracted by condensing lens & pass through crystal in different directions Thus different properties Only light in the center of field of view is vertical & like ortho ®Interference Figures Very useful for determining optical properties of xl Fig 7-13 Bloss, Optical Crystallography, MSA

22. nw nw nw nw ne ne ne ne How interference figures work (uniaxial example) What do we see?? Bertrand lens N-S polarizer Sample (looking down OA) Interference figure provides a zoomed ‘picture’ of the optic axes and the areas around that which have rays which are split and refracted – must be gathered in line with optic axis!! sub-stage condenser W E-W polarizer © Jane Selverstone, University of New Mexico, 2003

23. O E Fig. 7-14 Uniaxial Interference Figure • Circles of isochromes • Black cross (isogyres) results from locus of extinction directions • Center of cross (melatope) represents optic axis • Approx 30o inclination of OA will put it at margin of field of view

24. Fig. 7-14 Uniaxial Figure • Centered axis figure as 7-14: when rotate stage cross does not rotate • Off center: cross still E-W and N-S, but melatope rotates around center • Melatope outside field: bars sweep through, but always N-S or E-W at center • Flash Figure: OA in plane of stage Diffuse black fills field brief time as rotate

25. Optic Sign • Find NE-SW quadrants of the field • Slide the full wave (550nm) plate (aka gypusm plate) in • This slows the ray aligned NE-SW relative to the retardation - if that ray is more retarded it turns blue (adds 550 nm of retardation)

26. Biaxial Minerals – Optic Axes • Biaxial Minerals have 2 optic axes • Recall that biaxial minerals are of lower symmetry crystal classes (orthorhombic, monoclinic, and triclinic) • The plane containing the 2 optic axes is the optic plane looking down either results in extinction in XPL-no retardation, birefringence • The acute angle between the 2 different optic axes is the 2V angle how this angle relates to the velocities of refracted rays in the crystal determines the sign (+ or -)

27. … but there are a few generalizations that we can make The potato has 3 perpendicular principal axes of different length – thus, we need 3 different RIs to describe a biaxial mineral X direction = na(lowest) Y direction = nb(intermed; radius of circ. section) Z direction = ng(highest) • Orthorhombic: axes of indicatrix coincide w/ xtl axes • Monoclinic: Y axis coincides w/ one xtl axis • Triclinic: none of the indicatrix axes coincide w/ xtl axes

28. 1. Optic axis figure - pick a grain that stays dark on rotation determine sign w/ gyps Will see one curved isogyre (+) (-) Biaxial interference figures There are lots of types of biaxial figures… we’ll concentrate on only two determine 2V from curvature of isogyre 90° 60° 40°

29. 2V=20° 2V=40° 2V=60° (+) Biaxial interference figures 2. Bxa figure (acute bisectrix) - obtained when you are looking straight down between the two O.A.s. Hard to find, but look for a grain with intermediate d. Use this figure to get sign and 2V:

30. hi d lo d Quick review: Indicatrix gives us a way to relate optical phenomena to crystallographic orientation, and to explain differences between grains of the same mineral in thin section Isotropic? Uniaxial? Biaxial? Sign? 2V? All of these help us to uniquely identify unknown minerals.

31. Review – techniques for identifying unknown minerals • Start in PPL: • Color/pleochroism • Relief • Cleavages • Habit • Then go to XPL: • Birefringence • Twinning • Extinction angle • And Confocal lense: • Uniaxial or biaxial? • 2V if biaxial • Positive or negative?

32. Go to your book… • Chemical formula • Symmetry • Uniaxial or biaxial, (+) or (-) • RIs: lengths of indicatrix axes • Birefringence (d) = N-n • 2V if biaxial • Diagrams: • Crystallographic axes • Indicatrix axes • Optic axes • Cleavages • Extinction angles